Nick Schneider of the Greene County Daily World reports that Monroe Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Todd has been appointed special judge to hear the motions, that were filed Jan. 30. No hearing date was set.

In his motion to the court, 49-year-old Walters requested the court to reduce his sentence to the terms of his plea agreement that was signed in 1994 and pleaded guilty to the May 23, 1993 felony murder of Robert Gillett in Linton.

He also pleaded guilty to the burglary of Gillett's home.

Walters was linked by DNA evidence to the crime scene by his blood that was in the home near Humphreys Park in Linton.

Walters has also petitioned the court to waive the $2,000 in fines that were imposed on him at his sentencing two decades ago because of his indigent status.

Walters, currently an inmate at Pendleton Correctional Facility, noted in his petition to the court that Special Judge William Sleva was appointed by former Greene Superior Court Judge David Holt to hear the Post Conviction Relief Petition, and the remainder of the proceedings and sentencing determinations were to revert back to Greene Superior Court.

On May 11, 1994, Walters plead guilty to burglary - a class B felony and received 20 years with the DOC, which 10 years was to be executed and 10 years on probation.
He was plead guilty to murder, a Class A felony, and received 60 years with 48 years executed and 12 years probation.

In his motion, Walters says he has met all of the statutory requirements while incarcerated, including: Completion of an educational program, vocational education program, substance abuse program and has exhibited a pattern of behavior consistent with rehabilitation.

Walters said reduction of his sentence would be advantageous because he has immediate housing and employment upon his release.

According to court records, Walters says he will live with his mother, Dawn Miller in Linton, or his son, Jeremiah, in Indianapolis.

Walters says he has immediate employment through a new Indiana Workforce Development program that he has been accepted into which seeks out prisoners with appropriate skills and who are within six months of their release date.

Presently, Walters, has an earliest possible release date of June 13.

Walters appealed to the court to grant the motion and stated that has "taken full responsibility for his part in the crimes.

He wrote, "The petitioner truly understands the mistake he made by breaking the law and also sees the error of his irresponsible decisions that led to this tragic chain of events; but as you are aware, the petitioner is so sorry and has paid so dearly for his involvement."

Among the reasons for the judge to consider favorably his request, Walters listed:
* An outstanding conduct and work record in prison.

* Receipt of Associate and Bachelor degrees from the Anchor Theological Institute and Bible Seminary; Associate and Bachelor degrees in business administration from Ball State University; a barber degree from Vocational Barber College.

* Successful completion of DOC programs in substance abuse, anger management, stress management, parenting, thinking for a change, PLUS program with more than 4,000 hours of community service.

* Completing more than 900 independent correspondence courses and hundreds of bible courses.

* Sponsoring more than 2,000 meals through the Feed the Children program.
Addressing the judge, Walters, who prepared the motions himself, stated, "Your Honor, I have taken steps to ensure my success upon release, but more during this time (of incarceration), I realized that I can not hang around with people whose conscience only catches up with them when they get caught. I am truly ashamed of myself and there is no worse pain that I have experienced than realizing the hurt I caused the ones that I loved the most in the world when I brought this incident to our own doorstep and thereby, included them in this nightmare."

He added, "I want you to know that if I could only go back and undo or redo what I chose to do, I would. But as you know, I cannot. What I can do and have done and will continue to do, is take the steps to prevent me from ever repeating these behaviors that brought me here."

Walters previously petition the court in November 2012 for entry into the Community Transition program through the Greene County Community Corrections Department.
However, on Dec. 5, 2012, Greene County Community Corrections filed a letter with the court asking for denial. Judge Sleve denied Waters' motion on Dec. 18, 2012.